If I Only Had a Heart
by SuperTeenNewsieAvengerGal
Summary: Drake Merwin is ready to kill Sam, Caine, and anyone else who needs killing. Diana knows one of Drake's secrets, that can be used against him. She and Astrid make a plan involving this secret. This secret is Lucy Dalton, whose trust is unknown.
1. A Plan?

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the ****Gone**** books, or any of their characters. I only own Lucy and the plot that comes with her. This story takes place mainly in Hunger, with some flashbacks. This story is to prove that Drake Merwin has a heart. **

**Note: The beginning of this chapter is in Diana's perspective, but then it changes to Lucy's when it says FLASHBACK. **

Chapter One: Present Time

I walked away from McDonalds, where everybody seemed to be partying. It was a pity that I wasn't there to spoil everyone's fun.

I continued walking, when I heard footsteps from behind me. I turned around. It was that not-so dumb blonde girl, Astrid and her brother.

"Diana, I need your help." She told me. I rolled my eyes.

"In what? Learning how to attract less numbskull boys?" I returned.

"Funny," she said. "Look, Perdido Beach has a major problem that could be a threat to Coates as well."

"What is it?"

"Drake." I cringed. I wasn't extremely scared of him, but he had a sick mind in all ways. Of course, I knew half his secrets because of Caine, which made it easier for me to make fun of the psychopath. But Drake being a threat to Coates Academy? Puh-lease.

"He's not much to worry about, Astrid. He's just a lunatic who wants to kill everyone. That's all." I said as I smirked at her. I began walking away again.

"Diana!" She shouted. I turned on my heel.

"What?" I shouted back. She sighed.

"Do you know anything about him that might make him lose it?"

"He's already lost it, and he lost it a long time ago." I smiled.

"I meant lose control. Anything that might make his extremely small heart break. Something emotional." She asked me. I thought about it for a moment. Drake didn't have much of a heart to begin with, and it was getting constantly smaller. There were only three things that his heart loved: pain to others, guns, and a girl named Lucy Dalton.

"Lucy Dalton." I replied.

"Who?"

"L-U-C-Y D-A-L-T-O-N." I spelled out for her.

"Who's she? How can she help us?" Astrid asked like an eager puppy.

"It's kinda a long story, and I want to get back to Coates before it gets dark." I said as I turned.

"Diana, we need to know. People will die if Drake attacks us. No one really stands a chance against him, not even Caine." I froze at those words.

"I know. None of us stand a chance without Lucy's help."

"Will you tell me?" she asked.

"I guess I have to now. Can we, uh, go to your house?" I asked.

"We can go to **a** house, but not mine. Drake burned it down." She said, looking down at her brother.

"That's fine." I replied. So much for staying safe at Coates tonight.

"So, who is Lucy Dalton?"

**FLASHBACK**

I arrived at Coates Academy at exactly 6:53 in the morning. My parents had recently died in a car crash, leaving me alone. I wasn't scared. Mrs. Temple, a friend of my father's, had offered to pay for me to go to Coates Academy. She was the nurse of the school, and made arrangements.

I looked up at the great building, with the Coates symbol hanging on a flag above the doors. The building was made of brick, and looked very old fashioned. I grabbed my suitcase, and walked up to the front door. I grabbed hold of the intricate knocker on the door, and knocked three times.

No one answered the door until 27 seconds later. The lady opening the door wore a black skirt, a formal white shirt, and a navy blue school blazer over it. She looked about thirty five years old, had reddish hair, freckles, and a kind smile.

"You must be Miss Dalton, correct?" she asked me with a comforting voice. I nodded.

"Well come on in, child. It's freezing out there." She said as she beckoned me into the building. As I walked in, I noticed a grand stair case that split in half to lead to two different sides of the next floor, a room with a blazing fire and maroon couches surrounding it, and a hallway that led to an enormous room that had at least a hundred tables set up.

"How do you like it?" she asked me. I smiled.

"It feels absolutely comforting, but at the same time looks like a grand mansion." I said with my little British accent. I had lived in London with my aunt from the time I was three until the time I was nine and a half. I had never spoken with an "American" accent. British accents were the most normal for me.

"That's good. Now, follow me and I will get you settled in your dorm." She said.

"Are they awake? I wouldn't like to wake someone up when they need sleep." I informed her. She chuckled.

"All of the students are already awake, dear. The first classes will start at 7:45, after breakfast. Mess Hall should be opening in about five minutes."

"How will I know what my classes are?" I asked her. She handed me a small blue index card.

"These are your classes, and you share all of them with Caine Soren. He's a very nice boy, and will be more than willing to show you around." We continued walking up the grand staircase, and turned left.

"These are the girl dorms, and if you had turned right, you would have reached the boy dorms. Your dorm is number 46B. The girls sharing a room with you are Diana Ladris, Brianna Peck, and Dekka Sutters. They are among the kindest girls here."

We walked to room 46B, and entered. I saw three girls all wearing similar uniforms. One was smaller, and had dark brown hair but very light skin; one had caramel colored skin, and glossy black hair; and the other girl had chocolate brown colored skin and somewhat curly black hair. I was only a couple inches shorter than the caramel skinned girl.

"Girls, this is Lucy Dalton. She will be your new roommate." The kind lady said. She nodded at me, and closed the door behind her. The shorter girl walked up to me.

"I'm Brianna. Can I see your schedule? Oh rats, you don't have any classes with me. You must be fourteen, since you have all your classes with Caine." She said quickly.

"She has all her classes with Caine? Good grief." The caramel skinned girl sighed. "Feel free to come to me for mental therapy. You might need it."

"Well at least she has all her classes with Caine, not Drake." The darkest skinned girl said. She held out her hand. "I'm Dekka and this here," she jerked a thumb at the caramel skinned girl. "is Diana. She's Caine's girlfriend."

"I'm serious, you will need mental therapy." Diana muttered.

"Nice to meet you, ladies." I said. Brianna's mouth dropped.

"You're from Europe? You have an amazing accent. How long did you live there? Why are you here, exactly? Can you teach me how to speak with an accent?" Brianna asked rapidly.

"I used to live in London, with my aunt. I lived there from when I was three until I was nine years old. My accent hasn't really gone away I guess…" I answered.

"That's alright, I like it." Brianna stated. I looked at the clock.

"I should probably get dressed, shouldn't I?" I asked the group.

"Do you have a uniform?" Diana asked me. I nodded. I had received it in the mail two days ago.

I started to unpack my suitcase on the empty bed. I took out a pair of skinny jeans, my white dress shirt, and my blazer. I put them on quickly then grabbed my shoes.

"Ready?" Dekka asked me. I nodded confidently, and stepped out the door.


	2. Coates Academy

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters etc. **

**Note: This whole chapter is in Flashback Time. Lucy's Perspective. The next time it changes to Present Time I'll tell you whose perspective it's in.**

Chapter 2:** FLASHBACK**

The hallway between all the girl dorms was packed with girls, ranging from twelve years old, to seventeen years old. I walked with Diana, Dekka, and Brianna down the grand staircase, to the entrance for the mess hall. Dekka and Brianna had friends in other dorms, and they headed off.

"Lucy, I think you should meet Caine." Diana told me.

"But you said I would have to have mental therapy." I replied. Diana confused me.

"I lied. You'll only need that once you meet Drake." She said with a giggle.

We waited in the line for our food, but it was worth the wait. The pancakes that were served looked absolutely marvelous, and the bacon looked delicious. I grabbed a bottle of juice, and followed Diana to a table that consisted mainly of guys.

"Hey Diana, who's this lovely lady?" one of the guys joked.

"This is Lucy Dalton. I'd just like to inform you, Caine, that she has all her classes with **you**." Diana retorted.

"Well I'm honored!" Caine exclaimed in a mocking tone. He held out his hand to me.

"Caine. Caine Soren."

"Lucy Dalton." I said. Caine smiled.

"You're from England, aren't you?" he asked me. I nodded, and he smiled…again.

"Caine, stop smiling and introduce her to everyone." Diana snapped.

"Alright…jeez…" the boy muttered. "This here," he pointed to Diana, "is Diana." I laughed. Diana raised her hand to slap him, but refrained from doing so.

"This here is Bug," he said as he pointed to a younger boy with freckles and big ears and smiled. "And this is Drake." He finished while pointing to a boy with shaggy blonde hair, who somewhat resembled a shark. Drake didn't smile.

"Nice to meet you all." I said quietly. Diana sat down, and I sat down next to her.

"So, where in England did you live?" the boy named Bug asked.

"I lived in London, with my aunt. I lived there from when I was three until I was nine."

"Where were your parents?" Caine asked.

"They were filming in Australia." I replied.

"Why'd they send you here?" Drake asked in a low voice. Everyone at our table looked at me.

"They didn't send me here, Drake. They died two months ago in a car crash. Mrs. Temple offered to have me go to school here." I replied. Drake nodded slowly. "What about you?" I asked him. Diana looked like she was going to burst out in laughter, along with Caine and Bug. Drake looked like he wanted to kill someone.

"They sent me here for a reason. Let's leave it at that." He replied harshly. He got up from the table, and left quickly. Once he did, Caine, Diana, and Bug burst out laughing.

"That was so perfect!" Diana exclaimed.

"What was?" I asked her.

"Did you see his face?" Caine laughed.

"What about it?" I asked him.

"You…you…made him look scared!" Bug said with a high pitched laugh.

"I did?" I asked them. The three of them nodded. I finished the rest of my breakfast quickly, and took my juice with me. The others just kept talking as I headed off.

I walked up the grand staircase to my dorm. Once I got there, I found that Brianna and Dekka were already there.

"How was breakfast? Wasn't it delicious? I always love the bacon. Don't you?" Brianna said.

"It was great." I said. I grabbed my blue card, and sat down on my bed.

"Something wrong, Lucy?" Dekka asked. I looked up at her.

"I hurt someone's feelings at breakfast this morning. Diana and Caine were laughing because I made him look scared." I said.

"Who?" Brianna asked me with eager eyes.

"A kid named Drake." I replied. Brianna and Dekka looked at each other.

"You made Drake look scared?" Dekka asked. I nodded. She smiled. "Caine and Diana were laughing because Drake is usually the one to make everyone else scared of him."

"Really?"

"Really." Brianna piped up.

"Now, you might want to get your backpack, or bag." Dekka told me. I reached inside my suitcase and pulled out my black Jansport backpack.

"Great, now let's see what classes we have together." Dekka said as she looked at my card. "Awesome! We have four classes together!" she exclaimed. Dekka pointed out the classes we had in common. I saw Brianna pull out a copy of Seventeen Magazine from Diana's bag, and hold her finger up to her lips as if to say, "Shhhh." I laughed a little bit, and Dekka turned around, took the magazine right out of Brianna's hands and dragged her towards the door.

"Brianna is getting antsy, we're gonna go to the library. Wanna come?"

"Sure!" I exclaimed. I put my backpack on, grabbed my black knitted beret/beanie, and followed them.

We walked halfway down the stairs to where the two sides merged together, and looked at the wall. Dekka pushed a ceramic grape that was part of the statue above us. A door in the wall opened, and we headed inside.

"We have to keep our library and classrooms safe from any possible burglars. That's why we have the secret door."Brianna told me. We walked down the hallway until we came in front of two wooden doors. A sign above the door said, "Library" in fancy lettering.

The three of us walked in, and it was like the library scene in Beauty and the Beast. The library had a very high ceiling, with books from your toe to an inch away from the ceiling. The door was the only place without bookshelves in the whole room. There were a couple shelves that circled around a desk. These shelves consisted of the textbooks that might be needed for different classes. The desk in the center was the checkout desk.

"It's wonderful." I whispered to Dekka. She nodded, and brought me to the desk. There was an old lady sitting at the desk, but she did not look like a very strict person. She smiled, and her blue eyes glittered behind her glasses.

"What can I help you with, Miss Dekka?" She asked.

"This is Lucy Dalton. She's new here." Dekka answered sweetly.

"Oh, well Miss Dalton, you will probably need a library card and your textbooks, correct?" the lady said.

"I think that's correct." I said.

"You have a very fine accent, Miss Dalton. Now, may I see your schedule?" the lady asked me. I handed her my blue card, and followed her to one of the surrounding shelves. She handed me two textbooks, one for Biology, and one for Trigonometry. We headed to another shelf, where she handed me a textbook for English, a textbook for History, and a textbook called "A History of the Drama World". I was taking a drama class with six other students. My other two subjects were Physical Education, and Free period. I had lunch after Trigonometry and before my free period. The lady led me back to the desk and handed me a card. It said the words "Temporary Library Card" on it, and did not have my picture.

"These are your books for the rest of the semester, and this is your card until we have picture day."

"Thank you." I said as I headed towards the door of the library. I waved at Dekka and Brianna, and headed down the hall.

It was easy to find my first classroom. I had Biology first, then History, then English, then Trigonometry, then lunch. I would worry about the rest of my classes later. I looked at my watch, which read 7:39 am. I looked into the window of the classroom, and saw that there were a couple of students already in there. I walked into the room and spotted the teacher. He wore the same uniform that I saw the other boys wearing, but he had his name on his blazer. "Z. M. Karston."

"Why hello there!" He shouted from the whiteboard. I looked behind me to make sure he was talking to me, and then walked towards him.

"Hello, Mr. Karston." I said with a smile.

"How do you do, Miss…?"

"Dalton. Lucy Dalton." I finished. He nodded enthusiastically.

"Well Miss Dalton, I see you already have your textbook. But I have a notebook here for you. Vice Principal Watkins informed me you were coming." Mr. Karston said as he handed me a blue notebook. I heard a bell ring, which either signaled class beginning, or five minutes until class started.

"That means we have five minutes until class. Feel free to roam around, but come back here once the second bell rings so we can find a seat for you." He said. I smiled, and walked towards the other side of the room. This room must've been where we did worksheets and the writing in our notebooks, because it had a multitude of tables for two students each. There was a desk for Mr. Karston, a whiteboard, a digital projector, and lots of books and equipment. There was a door in the corner that led to a science lab. I could see microscopes, scales, and other science-y things. I looked at the kids who were already here, and smiled at them if they looked at me. I heard the door open, and Caine walked in. He looked around the room, and then walked over to me.

"Hey Lucy, you have all your classes with me right?" Caine asked.

"Yeah, I got my textbooks already, but I need to follow you to know where I'm going." I replied.

"That's fine with me, but Drake has six classes with us out of seven. I'm not sure if he got over what you said at breakfast." Caine said.

"I'm really sorry about that, actually, I'll apologize later, between classes." I suggested.

"Apologize? How brave are you?" Caine laughed. I looked at him blankly. Caine stepped closer to me.

"Drake was sent here because while he was on a hunting trip with his Dad, he tried to shoot another man. He wasn't scared to kill the man either." Caine whispered in my ear. I covered my wide open mouth in fear. Drake was a killer? Or at least, he wanted to be one? I realized how much more I had hurt his feelings than I meant to.

"That's so sad, Caine. Now I really feel bad." I whined. Caine stared at me.

"You feel bad for him? For an almost-killer?" Caine asked with a surprised tone.

"Think about it Caine. Maybe he had an awful childhood or a terrible experience with someone that made him want to kill that person in the forest. Maybe Drake isn't all that bad."

"You know, other than the fact that Drake is sadistic, I think you may be right." Caine replied mockingly. I heard the second bell ring, Caine smiled (again…), and headed to his seat. I walked to the front of the room, where Mr. Karston was waiting for me. I looked at the tables. Caine already had a partner, and so did Diana. Caine looked around the room for the empty seat, and cringed.

The only empty seat was next to Drake.

"Well class, we have a new student starting here today. Her name is Lucy Dalton, and I hope you will kindly accept her here at Coates." Mr. Karston announced. He pointed at the seat next to Drake, and I slowly walked over to my partner.

I took my backpack off, and put it on the floor next to me. I looked over at Drake, who glared at me.

"Drake, correct?" I asked him quietly as Mr. Karston grabbed a pile of papers from his desk.

"Yeah." He muttered. He started taking out his notebook, which was red. I followed suit and took mine out as well. He had drawn all sorts of weapons on the cover of his notebook in black pen, which made an interesting silhouette.

"Nice notebook. I didn't know you could draw." I said. He was good at drawing weapons.

"Am I supposed to say thanks?" he asked me mockingly. I laughed quietly.

Mr. Karston had started passing out worksheets to the class.

"So, what are we doing?" I asked Drake. He barely smiled.

"I don't know yet. I think we're just finishing and discussing this worksheet…hopefully." He replied.

"Don't like school much?" I questioned him. He nodded.

"Drake?" he looked up.

"I'm sorry about this morning. I didn't mean to offend you in any way, honestly." I said quickly. Drake didn't respond.

"Miss Dalton, we are currently working on evolution of living things. You and Drake will be working on the evolution of the chimpanzee." Mr. Karston explained. He handed us each a worksheet, and headed on to the next table.

"Great. More work to do." Drake sighed.

"It can't be that hard, Drake. After all, humans evolved from monkeys, so we just go backwards from there, right?"

"I guess so." Drake said slowly. He sat up straighter in his chair.

We worked on the worksheet for a good half hour before Mr. Karston stopped us. He told the class to put the partner names at the top of the paper, and turn it in. Luckily, we had finished.

I looked over to where Caine was sitting with his partner. He looked at me, and mouthed the words, "Has he killed you yet?" I smiled and replied, "He's really nice. I don't know how you can think he's mean!" Caine raised one of his eyebrows, and turned back to his partner. I looked at Drake. He was drawing another weapon on his notebook with a Sharpie. His face was very angular, and his smile looked like a shark's. He had blonde surfer hair, which fell over his eyes sometimes, but only when he was looking down. His uniform was wrinkled, but at least it didn't smell.

I looked at the clock. 8:24. We had 16 more minutes of class. I didn't hate this class, but so far, I didn't love it. Drake wasn't that bad a partner, and the work wasn't that hard. Mr. Karston had started passing out another load of papers.

"These are the tests you took last Friday. Most of you did remarkably well on this test. A few of you could strive to do better." Mr. Karston said.

"Are you one of the few?" I asked Drake. He shrugged.

"Probably. Science isn't really my thing. Neither is English, History, or Math. But I'm the king of PE. I think you're in my class." He said. I nodded.

Mr. Karston came over to our table with Drake's test in hand.

"You need to actually study, Mr. Merwin." He said.

"Sorry, won't happen again Mr. Karston." Drake muttered.

"Maybe this young lady could help you study. She did have a very high GPA at her last school." Mr. Karston said as he smiled at us.

"I'd be delighted to help, if Drake accepts the offer." I stated. Mr. Karston and I looked to Drake.

"Uh, sure. She can help me study." He said with a low voice.

"Great. That will be an excellent way for the both of you to study. Your test, Drake." Mr. Karston said as he gave the test to Drake.

"Thanks." Drake muttered. His score was 54 out of 100. I sighed.

"You **really** don't like work very much." I pointed out. Drake nodded.

"You're gonna make me actually study, aren't you?" Drake said. I grinned. "Great. Now my parents will blame me for doing so well."

And with that, bell rang.


	3. Forgiven

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the ****Gone**** series or the musical Wicked which I mention in this chapter. It starts off in Diana's perspective, and then changes to Lucy's. **

**Note: Please Please Please Review! :D**

Chapter Three: Present Time

"We need Lucy to help us, Diana. She's our only hope." Astrid said to me.

"I know, but will Sam accept help from someone he doesn't know, or possibly trust? I know that Caine wouldn't trust Lucy in this situation." I replied to her.

"Why not?"

"Because she loves Drake. That might sway her to his side."

"But she's a reasonable girl, Diana. If we have enough proof that what Drake is doing is completely wrong, she might agree with us for his sake." Astrid argued. I nodded. Everyone knew that Drake wanted revenge on Caine and Sam. The only way to stop that was if we used Lucy.

"We have to find her." I stated.

"Find her? Isn't she at Coates, or with your group?" Astrid asked me. I shook my head.

"One night she told Drake that she loved him, and left. It was the day after the FAYZ. Drake was death glaring at everyone like he used to."

"And you have no idea where she went. That's great, Diana." She said sarcastically.

"I know she came to Perdido Beach. She's staying at someone's house, probably. Someone she knows well."

"She knows Brianna well, and Dekka. We could look there."

"It's a place to start. We'll start in the morning, okay Astrid?" I asked her.

"Sounds great. Night."

"Night."

I started to get some sleep in the bed opposite Astrid. It was awfully nice in Perdido Beach, but Coates was my home. And that wouldn't change any time soon.

**FLASHBACK**

History and English were good, nothing missed there. Trigonometry was boring, except for the fact that Caine was trying to be funny the whole time. Drake had all of those classes with me, and since teachers typically put Drake in the back of the room, I was usually sitting near him. I walked with Caine, Drake, and Diana to lunch in the mess hall. They were serving a multitude of things; all sorts of sandwiches, pizza, Chinese food, and sushi. I picked up some chow mein, potstickers, and orange chicken.

"So, how do you like it here Lucy?" Caine asked me.

"Other than the fact that the school part isn't exciting, it's an amazing place." I replied.

"That's probably everyone's answer to that question." Diana said. She seemed like she was in a bad mood. I looked at Caine. He smiled (need I even say again?). Suddenly, I knew why. Caine was smiling at me. He's Diana's boyfriend. Obviously she'd be mad.

I ate my lunch quickly, and talked when it felt right. Soon enough, I was finished.

"See you guys later." I said. Bug waved, Caine smiled, and Drake looked up. I smiled weakly, and left the table.

This was the place where I felt welcome. I had friends here. I had teachers that liked me for me, not my grades. This was the place where I would be for a long time, and I was thankful for it.

I walked up to my dorm to hang out for our hour long lunch period. Brianna was already in the room, reading Diana's copy of Seventeen Magazine again. I sat down on my bed.

"What's up? How was the beginning of your first day? Is Caine bugging you yet? What about Drake? You're gonna be right at home soon enough." Brianna said in her rapid way.

I dropped off the textbooks from the beginning of the day, and kept the rest. I decided that the dorm was starting to get a little boring, so I took out my iPod. I put the headphones in my ears, and listened to Wicked. It was the first musical I had seen on Broadway, and I loved it. I started singing as I was lying on my bed, then proceeded to look at what homework I had tonight while singing. As I got up I saw Brianna's face, and smiled. I paused the song, and took one headphone out.

"Thought I wasn't much of a singer?" I smirked. Brianna nodded.

"You're really good. Where did you learn to sing like that? That's Wicked, right? I love that musical."

"Thanks. I turned off my iPod, and headed out of the dorm. My backpack seemed a lot lighter, and I sighed. I headed down the stairs, and pressed the grape-button-thingy. The door opened, and I headed towards the library.

Before I entered the library, I heard footsteps from behind me. I turned to see Drake standing behind me.

"Hello Drake," I said.

"Hey."

"What's up?" I asked him. He looked at the floor, for a second, and then he looked me in the eye.

"I forgive you. For, you know, what you said this morning. I just thought you might want to know." He said. Everyone described Drake as if he was some type of monster, but he was really just hiding hid inner self. I smiled.

"Thanks." I said quietly.

For some reason, Drake made me feel like I was doing some good in the world. He made me feel like I was a good person, not just someone who was here to live their life and be done with it.

Oh yeah, and Diana told me that Drake likes girls with accents. ;)


	4. Thinking and Blinking

**Disclaimer: I do not own Gone, or the books mentioned in this chapter. It starts out in Drake's POV, then Lucy's. This is the day of the FAYZ. The next chapter will explain what happened more than this chapter.**

**Note: Please review this chapter! I would like to know people's reaction to Drake's background story!**

Chapter 4: **FLASHBACK- Drake's POV**

The world is most definitely weird. Lucy, the new girl, has been nice to me all day. She doesn't cringe like other girls do, or act like Caine and Diana do. She was genuinely trying to be nice.

It felt nice, to be treated like person for once. Out of all the people I knew, I felt like she knew me best. Sure, Caine knows a lot about me, and he tells Diana everything that he knows, Lucy can see past just what I say. It's like she can read my mind or something.

She didn't have her last class with me, which for her was Drama. Believe me, if I ever joined that class I would probably be very, very drunk. She said it had gone well, and Caine was astounded at her talent. I could feel myself starting to smile, but I stopped myself. That would ruin my reputation.

I looked at the clock. 12:18 pm. I've never been able to get to sleep since the day my father started beating me.

It had started with him drinking amazing amounts of beer. My mom scolded him, and tried to stop him, but it was a lost case. One day I took the bottle right out of his hands and smashed it. My father slapped my face hard. I was seven. On my twelfth birthday, we got into a fight. He was drinking his seventh can of beer, and he didn't even remember that it was my birthday. I told him, "Put the freaking beer down, Dad! It's my birthday, and for once I don't want you to be drunk!" I had taken it too far. My mom was out of the house, getting my birthday cake. He took a rolling pin from the counter and whacked it against my back a number of times. I was on the floor bleeding and crying when my mom got home, and she was furious. He hit her with the rolling pin, right in the face. My mom just walked away from him, and cleaned me up.

She never filed a divorce. My dad sent me here to Coates because he was scared of me. He had taken me hunting once, and I asked him how hard it would be to kill a man. He just stared at me, and stared back at him. The only difference between our stares was that my eyes were full of hatred, while his were full of fear. My mom had agreed with him on sending me here, and I was glad to get away. After my first year here at Coates, I already had kids that were scared of me. The only two that weren't were Caine and Diana. He wasn't scared of me, because his uncle had killed a number of people before, including Caine's mother. Diana trusted Caine, but I could see that sometimes she feared me, sometimes not.

I looked over to the bed across from me, seeing Caine. He slept on his back, like a lot of people do. Bug did the same. I always slept on my side, because the wounds that my father had made a couple years ago still stung whenever I touched them, and burned if I lay on my back.

**FLASHBACK- Lucy's POV**

The next morning was calm. I had slept well since the beds here were extremely comfortable. I looked at the clock. 6:47 am. The others would be awake soon enough.

I put on a new pair of jeans, my white dress shirt and a red cardigan which had our school's symbol on it. I smiled, since this flattered my figure. I was at an average height for a fourteen year old, and had light brown hair. I remember my mother always commenting on my green eyes, and how they were abnormally bright. I smiled as I looked in the mirror. My mother had never been that close to me, but if I had to use one word to explain her, remarkable would be it. My father just read the paper, and saw me as more of a burden that he had to carry in life. My mother would comfort me, no matter what the trouble was. It was a pity that she had died.

I grabbed my backpack, and headed out the door.

The library was practically empty, since only a few other students were in the large room with me. I liked it here, since it was so calm and peaceful. I looked at the wall which I was currently passing. This wall had a number of classic books on it. To Kill a Mockingbird, The Secret Garden, Oliver Twist, and a number of others. I walked past all the shelves, noting what kind of books were where, and other things, such as how many red covered books where on this shelf, and so on. I looked at my watch, which read 6:59. I hurried out of the library, and to the line outside of Mess Hall.

The line was extremely long, so I headed towards the back of the line.

"Lucy!" I heard a voice shout. I turned around quickly. Drake had called m name, from the front of the line. Diana and Caine were standing close behind.

"Thanks," I said to him. He smiled a little bit. The Mess Hall doors opened, and we began to get our food.

Breakfast was breakfast, what else can I say? We all talked about common interests and such until we decided it was time to go. Science was great, especially because Drake and I had the high scores on the worksheet from yesterday. History and English were just fine, except for the fact that my English teacher, Mrs. Dawson, criticized the way I pronounced things with my accent. Trigonometry was the weirdest class of all, and it affected everyone more than we could've known.


	5. Chaos

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gone series, or any of the characters from it.**

**Note: This is a short chapter, but don't worry I'm working on the next one. Also, after today I might be slower on getting the next chapters out because today is my last day of Winter Break, and school starts again tomorrow. Please review!**

Chapter 5: **FLASHBACK-Lucy**

"Mr. Fayhe?" I asked out loud. I looked at the other kids in my class. Most of them looked shocked, some of them looked excited, and some of them were…gone.

"Hey! Where's Alex?" one kid shouted while pointing to the desk next to him.

"Charlotte's missing too!" another kid shouted.

"This isn't something that happens every day, is it?" I asked Caine. He shook his head.

"This has never happened before. I mean, a teacher has left the room before, but no one has ever just, disappeared."

"What do we do?" I said to him. He thought about something for a second, and then walked towards the front of the room.

"QUIET!" he shouted at all of us. The room became silent. "Thank you. Now, a lot of you were wondering where Mr. Fayhe went as well as some of the students in our class, correct?" Caine said in a calmer tone. Most kids said, "Yeah." or nodded their heads in agreement. Caine continued, "Then I'll need your help." He looked to the girl who had asked about Charlotte. "Was there anything unusual about Charlotte?" he asked her.

"No." she replied quietly.

"Alright, what about Alex?" he said to the boy who was concerned about his friend.

"Nothing unusual, Caine." He said. Caine shook his head. I looked at all of the people in the room. Caine, Drake, Diana, Dekka, and I were among the oldest now. Alex, Charlotte, and a couple of others were older than us. All of them were gone.

"How old were they?" I asked out loud. I looked to the boy, then the girl.

"15." Both of them said in unison. Caine looked at Drake, then to me.

"Who here is turning 15 soon?" he asked. No one raised their hands. I wasn't turning 15 for another year, since my birthday was last month. Caine pointed to me. "You're in charge. I'll be right back. Drake, Diana, come with me!" he said as he walked out the door. I looked at the class.

"What else do you know about the kids who disappeared?" I asked them.

"My friend Lily is gone. She was 16." One girl piped up.

"My brother Stanley is gone too. He's 15." A boy said.

"Mr. Fayhe is gone, and I think he's just a little older than fifteen." Dekka joked. The classroom was filled with laughter, and I was thankful for having Dekka here. If one kid started to cry, the rest of them would too, and I know that I wouldn't be able to handle that.

**FLASHBACK- Caine's POV**

I hurried out of my classroom, leaving Lucy in charge and with Drake and Diana at my side. I heard kids from all of the classrooms freaking out, screaming, and shouting either in excitement, or in fear. Luckily, I had a plan.

"Diana, try to calm the sixth and seventh graders down, Drake and I can handle the rest." I said to my two sidekicks. Diana nodded, and looked into the classroom to her left that was full of students who were running around like crazy. She looked at me, held up her middle finger, and walked in.

"What's the plan, Caine?" Drake asked me. I pointed to our right, where a ninth grade class was. We walked in, to see half of a class sitting in their seats, stunned.

"Caine!" a girl shouted at me. "What's going on? Half of our class disappeared into thin air. Even Mrs. Lattsel disappeared."

"I think we've got it sort of figured out." I said to her. I looked at the students that were still left. "Does anyone have their 15th birthday coming up soon? Preferably this month?" I asked them. Two boys raised their hands. "When?" I asked them.

"Mine's next week." One of them said.

"Mine's tomorrow." The other boy said. "Why are you asking?"

"Everyone over the age of 15 has disappeared. That means you probably will blink out tomorrow." Drake said with a harsh tone. The boy looked extremely pale.

"Does anyone know where Principal Rendell keeps the birth certificates?" I asked the class. Everyone shook their heads. "That's fine. Hey, can you guys try to calm other classes down? Drake and I can't get everywhere in this whole school, and we need some help. You guys game for that?" I asked them. Most of them nodded. "Cool. Drake and I are handling most of the older classes, and my friend Diana is trying to calm the sixth and seventh graders down. She will probably need your help."

Drake and I left the classroom, and repeated the whole process again…twenty-one times.


	6. Finding and Leaving

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gone series. You should know that by now.**

**Note: The beginning of this chapter is Present Time, and the rest of it is a FLASHBACK to the day that Lucy leaves Coates. It's a little bit romance-y at the end, but too bad. It's part of the story. :P**

**Chapter 6: Present Time- Diana's POV**

"Diana, wake up!" I heard a voice say. I turned over.

"Five more minutes, Mom." I mumbled.

"We need to find Lucy Dalton, Diana!" Astrid said in a persuasive tone.

"Fine." I sighed. It took me five minutes to get dressed, and three minutes later we were out the door.

Astrid and I walked around the neighborhood, heading towards the plaza. Astrid said it would be easier to find Brianna and/or Dekka from the plaza. Brianna was probably running around somewhere for Sam's sake, and Dekka was…wherever she was. I looked at the houses that we passed. Most of them had "Human Crew" graffiti on the walls and doors, but some houses had the words, "Freak" on them. The Human Crew didn't really like us kids with powers.

We finally reached the plaza, and Astrid turned to her left, towards the Day Care.

"I need to ask Mother Mary a question." She told me.

"When we entered, I saw a whole bunch of little kids running around, playing with toys, drawing wildly on pieces of paper, and dressing up like princesses, or pirates, and a whole bunch of other things. I smiled. I remembered when I was this little. I was the girl who wanted to be the pirate one day and the High Queen the next. I felt a tug on my jeans, and looked down. A little girl with blonde curls looked up at me. I knelt down to her level.

"Hello there, cutie." I said to her. She giggled in delight. "What's your name?"

"." She said, holding out the middle part of her name. I held out my hand.

"My name is Diana." I said in the sweetest voice I could. She shook my hand, and I read her for powers. The little girl had less than a one bar. Nothing to worry about. Astrid tapped my shoulder to signal us leaving. I tickled the little girl's chin, tapped her nose, and then left with Astrid and Little Pete.

"Since when have you been friendly?" Astrid asked me. I shrugged.

"I guess I've always been good with little kids. My Aunt made me babysit her usually bratty daughter, but her daughter loved me. I don't know what it is." I said, smiling.

"I guess that could come in handy." Astrid said. We walked another two blocks until we reached the place where Dekka was staying. Astrid knocked five times quickly on the door to signal that she wasn't in the Human Crew. I saw Dekka through the window, and she came to the door quickly.

"Astrid, Diana, what's up?" she asked us. She looked at Astrid for the answer, because she was, after all, Astrid the Genius.

"Do you know where Lucy Dalton is?" Astrid asked her. Dekka shook her head.

"If I did, I would let you know. She disappeared the day after The FAYZ started. Haven't seen her since."

"Thanks, Dekka." Astrid said as we began to walk away. I turned around.

"Hey Dekka!" I shouted through the closed door.

"What?" she asked once she had opened it.

"Do you know where Brianna is? We thought she might know something about Lucy."

"She wouldn't. Drake was the one who saw her last, and then Caine. Brianna might not even remember who Lucy is…or was."

"Okay, thanks Dekka." I said.

Astrid and I walked to the plaza in silence.

"That sucks." I said once we had arrived. Astrid nodded.

"We can't ask Drake, and we can't ask Caine." I continued. Caine wouldn't know where she was.

"I don't know what we're going to—what Little Pete?" Astrid said. Little Pete was tugging at her shirt, and pointing at his video game. Astrid looked at the screen, and gasped. I came over to look at the screen, and smiled.

It had an address on it, and a digital version of Lucy. 395 Popeye Lane.

We had lucked out.

**FLASHBACK: Lucy's POV (The night she leaves)**

All I had heard today was screaming, whining, crying, arguing, shouting, and the idea of invading Perdido Beach to take the small town over. The second day of whatever this was was hell. Caine had put me in charge of the younger kids, most of which ran around screaming in excitement.

It was only my third day here, and life was chaos.

**(Earlier in the day)**

After five hours of handling the 12 year olds, I was relieved by Dekka. She didn't look to happy about her post.

Once I left that room, I found Caine and Drake arguing in another. I walked in on their argument.

"What's up guys?" I asked them. Caine (you know what adjective keeps coming after his name). Drake surprisingly did the same.

"We were just deciding whether or not to invade Perdido Beach. They have a lot of food, empty houses, and they are probably willing to let us stay there. Once they realize that we're pretty much taking all of their food, it'll be too late to get rid of us." Drake explained. Caine performed a comically evil laugh.

"That's kinda mean, isn't it? I mean, those kids will starve, Caine. We have older kids, but think about how many little children they have over there! They need the food, Caine. We can't just invade their town." I argued.

"That's why you weren't in this conversation to start with." Caine retorted. I left the room, letting them do as they please. I could tell that Drake was seeing my point, but obeying Caine. I headed up to the dorms, packed my suitcase with all of my clothes, and my backpack with all of my non-textbook books, my iPod, and other things that I might enjoy. I put these things under my bed, and took a very long nap.

**(The night she leaves)**

When I woke up, it was dark out. Most kids were asleep, but I got my backpack and my suitcase, and headed down the stairs. I paused when I was at the landing, put my things down, and headed up to the boys dorms. Caine had told me that Bug, Drake, and he shared dorm 57A. I walked down the hallway, and looked for that dorm. Once I found it, I knocked on the door. Luckily, Drake opened it.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked me. I smiled.

"I'm leaving."

"You're what?"

"I'm leaving Coates." I said.

"No you're not." Drake replied in a serious tone.

"Yes I am Drake. If I'm going to live through this stupid thing I'm not going to practically attack Perdido Beach. I just can't do that. I just…" I stopped short when Drake's lips gently touched mine. They left a second later, and I hugged him tightly. He hugged me back.

"I'm sorry Drake."

"It's okay. Just…take care of yourself. Okay?" he said to me. I nodded.

"I love you Drake."

"I love you too."


	7. 395 Popeye Lane

**Disclaimer: I do not own Gone or its characters.**

**Note: I know this one's short…but it starts explaining things. Please review and keep reading!**

**Chapter 7: Present Time- Lucy's POV**

395 Popeye Lane. It was the nicest place to live in Perdido Beach…at least in my perspective. The first night I arrived here I found cabinets full of food, and not full of bugs. The refrigerator was full with delightful things, such as yogurt and milk and ice cream. A couple minutes later, I heard a knock on the door, and opened it to find three children asking for food to bring to the plaza. I gave them two bagfuls of food, and sent them on their way. Even though the food has gone, and the bugs have infected what's left, I do not regret my choice.

I was currently on the floor in the main hallway of the house. My clothes were covered in dirt, my hair tangled and messy. I had twisted my ankle a couple days ago, and could not get up the long set of stairs to the shower. All I could do was sit, and hope someone would find me.

I looked at my watch. 12:37 pm. I always wondered why I noticed the exact time, and corrected people when they got the time wrong. I shrugged. That didn't matter anymore. All that mattered was survival, or waiting to blink out. I had four more months.

I heard a knock on the door.

"Lucy, I know you're there!" a voice shouted. It was Diana.

"Can we come in, Lucy?" another shouted.

"Come in! Come in!" I shouted with a raspy voice.

I was right. Diana opened the door, and the other girl followed. Both girls ran to my side.

"Hello Diana." I said faintly. She smiled at me. (Well at least it wasn't Caine…)

"Hello Lucy." She replied. I semi-hugged her, then looked to her friend.

"Who's this?" I asked Diana. The other girl held out her hand to me.

"I'm Astrid Ellison." She stated. I started shaking her hand, and then stopped. Three numbers appeared in my head. 4, 13, and 96. I continued shaking her hand again.

"Lucy, we need you to come with us." Astrid told me. I began to nod slowly.

"Why, exactly?" I asked her.

"Drake is becoming unstoppable. You're the only person that can help us, Lucy. He'll blow the rest of us out of the water with no hesitation. You're our only hope." Diana said.

I didn't know how to respond to that. Diana was my friend, and Caine was too. If Caine couldn't stop Drake, no one could. Why did they come to me? Why did I have to make this my decision?

Because Drake loved me.

They think that I am capable of breaking his heart and that will stop him from whatever he's doing.

For now, I wasn't sure what would happen. But I had to give Diana and her friends some support.

"I agree." I said. Astrid looked thrilled, as well as Diana.

"As long as you can get me out of here. I twisted my ankle." I said, laughing.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine. Lana will heal you." Astrid said. I looked at her, confused…but I decided it wasn't something to worry about right now.

All I had to worry about was Drake.

And of course, the time.


End file.
